Manchester City have signed the biggest kit deal in their history and the second-highest in the Premier League, with a 10-year agreement with Puma worth a reported £650 million ($863m).
The deal sits only behind Manchester United’s with Adidas when it comes to the most lucrative in the English top-flight.
City, who currently work in partnership with Nike, will see a new sponsorship contract kick in from the summer of 2019.
The club’s chief executive, Ferran Soriano, has said: “It’s a historic day for us because what we are doing has not been done before, an unprecedented partnership covering five clubs over four continents.”
Puma’s deal includes not only Manchester City but also sister clubs Melbourne City, Girona, Club Atletico Torque and Sichuan Jiuniu and involves the male, female and youth sides.
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Bjorn Gulden, the CEO of Puma, told City’s official website: “PUMA’s partnership with City Football Group is the largest deal that we have ever done - both in scope and ambition.
“We are very excited to partner with City Football Group, whose success, ambition and drive for innovation has seen them setting new standards, on and off the field.
“We look forward to building the most innovative partnership in football by redefining the sports partnership model both on and off the pitch.
“We want to maximise on-field performance as well as football culture, in areas such as music, gaming and fashion to connect and inspire the fanbase of each team.”
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Soriano added: “This announcement marks the start of an exciting new chapter for City Football Group.
“Our relationship with PUMA, covering five City Football Group clubs across four continents, will reset the model for sports partnerships on a truly global scale whilst being locally relevant and authentic for fans around the world.
“PUMA share our vision for challenging expectations, and we are looking forward to what we believe will be a ground-breaking partnership.”
Puma are already involved with a number of leading figures at the Etihad Stadium.
Among their list of sponsorship clients are City’s star striker Sergio Aguero.
They are also tied to club captain Vincent Kompany and star players within the women’s team including Caroline Weir, Pauline Bremer and Nikita Parris.